Vehicle control apparatus

ABSTRACT

A vehicle control apparatus is mounted on a vehicle including an emergency stop function to detect an abnormal state of a driver and automatically stop the vehicle. The vehicle control apparatus provides control at a time of stopping the vehicle and includes process execution sections and a process stop section. The process execution sections perform predetermined emergency processes in response to the emergency stop function stopping the vehicle; the emergency processes control instruments mounted on the vehicle and use a battery of the vehicle as a driving power source. The process stop section stepwise stops at least part of the emergency processes performed by the process execution sections based on a predetermined stop sequence.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present application is a divisional application of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 15/522,679, filed on Apr. 27, 2017, which is anational stage application under 35 U.S.C. § 371(c) of PCT ApplicationNo. PCT/JP2015/005389, filed on Oct. 27, 2015, which claims priorityfrom Japanese Patent Application No. 2014-223019 filed on Oct. 31, 2014,the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to a vehicle control apparatus thatcontrols vehicle while stopped.

BACKGROUND ART

A publicly known technology automatically controls a vehicle in order toavoid a subsequent accident or a request for rescue when a driverdriving a vehicle enters an abnormal state and the abnormality isdetected. The vehicle control system described in patent literature 1provides an emergency stop function to automatically stop a vehicle whendetecting an abnormal state such as a heart failure on a driver. Thevehicle control system uses a vehicle battery as a power source andperforms an emergency process that notifies a vehicular surrounding ofthe driver's abnormality by using a sound or a turn signal lamp orreports the situation to a destination such as an emergency unit whenthe emergency stop function stops the vehicle.

PRIOR ART LITERATURES Patent Literature

Patent literature 1: JP 2000-301963 A

SUMMARY OF INVENTION

According to the vehicle control system in patent literature 1, however,the battery may run down because the system endlessly performs severalemergency processes that use the vehicle battery as a power source whenthe emergency stop function stops the vehicle. The battery running downcauses the engine to fail to start even if the driver recovers from theabnormal state and tries to drive the vehicle. Decreasing the number ofemergency processes to be performed may save the battery consumption andincrease the duration time of emergency processes. However, this mayinvolve an emergency process that is not performed at all.

It is an object of the present disclosure to increase the duration timeof emergency processes without decreasing the number of emergencyprocesses that can be performed at the time a vehicle stops under astate where an abnormal state of a driver is detected and the vehiclestops automatically.

According to an example of the present disclosure, a vehicle controlapparatus, which is mounted on a vehicle including an emergency stopfunction to detect an abnormal state of a driver and automatically stopthe vehicle, is provided to include process execution sections and aprocess stop section. The process execution sections performpredetermined emergency processes in response to the emergency stopfunction stopping the vehicle; the emergency processes controlinstruments that are mounted on the vehicle and use a battery of thevehicle as a driving power source. The process stop section stepwisestops at least part of the emergency processes performed by the processexecution sections based on a predetermined stop sequence. Thisconfiguration can increase the duration time of emergency processeswithout decreasing the number of emergency processes that can beperformed at a time of stopping the vehicle.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

The above and other objects, features and advantages of the presentdisclosure will become more apparent from the following detaileddescription made with reference to the accompanying drawings. In thedrawings:

FIG. 1A is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a vehicle anda portable apparatus;

FIG. 1B is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of anenvironmental information detector;

FIG. 1C is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of an interiorinformation detector;

FIG. 1D is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a vehicleinformation detector;

FIG. 1E is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of an HMI unit;

FIG. 1F is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of an interiorenvironment adjustor;

FIG. 1G is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of exteriorequipment;

FIG. 1H is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a travelcontrol apparatus;

FIG. 2 is a flowchart (1) illustrating an emergency control process;

FIG. 3 is a flowchart (2) illustrating an emergency control process;

FIG. 4 is a flowchart (3) illustrating an emergency control process;

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating a situation recording process; and

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a transfer process.

EMBODIMENTS FOR CARRYING OUT INVENTION

Embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with referenceto the accompanying drawings.

1. Configuration

As in FIG. 1A, a vehicle 1 according to the embodiment includes anenvironmental information detector 11, an interior information detector12, a vehicle information detector 13, a recording unit 14, an HMI(Human Machine Interface) unit 15, an interior environment adjustor 16,exterior equipment 17, an engine control circuit 18, a battery controlcircuit 19, a travel control apparatus 20, a drive assist controlcircuit 21, and an emergency control circuit 22 connected to theseelements. The vehicle 1 is also referred to as a host vehicle. The term“information” is used as a countable noun as well as an uncountablenoun.

The environmental information detector 11 includes an exterior camera111, a laser sensor 112, a millimeter wave sensor 113, a navigationapparatus 114, an in-vehicle communication instrument 115, an exteriormicrophone 116, an illuminance sensor 117, and a rain and snow sensor118 (FIG. 1B) as apparatuses to detect an environment around the vehicle1.

The exterior camera 111 includes a front camera to capture a scene aheadof the vehicle 1, a rightward camera to capture a scene to the right ofthe vehicle 1, a leftward camera to capture a scene to the left of thevehicle 1, and a rear camera to capture a scene behind the vehicle 1.The laser sensor 112 irradiates laser light as a transmission signal,receives laser light as a reception signal reflecting off an objectaround the vehicle 1, and detects the object reflecting the laser lightbased on the transmission signal and the reception signal. Themillimeter wave sensor 113 irradiates a millimeter wave as atransmission signal, receives a millimeter wave as a reception signalreflecting off an object around the vehicle 1, and detects the objectreflecting the millimeter wave based on the transmission signal and thereception signal.

The navigation apparatus 114 detects a position of the vehicle 1specified by the latitude and the longitude based on a GPS signalreceived via a GPS (Global Positioning System) antenna. The navigationapparatus 114 stores map data and a variety of information. The map dataincludes classifications and position information about facilities, roadinformation, and a variety of data needed to display the map. The roadinformation is so detailed as to be capable of specifying to which laneof a road the vehicle 1 is positioned, based on the position of thevehicle 1. The navigation apparatus 114 according to the embodiment candetect a position of the vehicle 1 so accurately as to be capable ofdetermining to which lane the vehicle 1 is positioned. The navigationapparatus 114 can specify to which lane of a road the vehicle 1 ispositioned, based on the position of the vehicle 1 and the roadinformation.

The in-vehicle communication instrument 115 performs wirelesscommunication with an external communication instrument by using amobile telephone network and the Internet network. The in-vehiclecommunication instrument 115 also detects the radio wave strength of areceived radio wave. The in-vehicle communication instrument 115according to the embodiment performs wireless communication with aportable apparatus 3 to be described later. The exterior microphone 116detects the sound around the vehicle 1. The illuminance sensor 117 ismounted on an instrument panel at the front of a driver's seat anddetects the illuminance around the vehicle 1 and the illuminance in theinterior of the vehicle 1. The rain and snow sensor 118 detectsrain/snow (rain or snow) on a windshield of the vehicle 1. Thedescription below uses the term “environmental information” to representthe information detected by an apparatus equipped for the environmentalinformation detector 11.

The interior information detector 12 includes a driver monitoring camera121 and an interior monitoring camera 122 each as an apparatus to detecta situation in the interior of the vehicle 1 (FIG. 1C). The drivermonitoring camera 121 is mounted in the instrument panel at the front ofthe driver's seat and captures a scene in front of the driver. Theinterior monitoring camera 122 is mounted on a ceiling in the interiorof the vehicle 1 and captures a situation in the entire interior. Thedescription below uses the term “interior information” to represent theinformation detected by an apparatus equipped for the interiorinformation detector 12.

The vehicle information detector 13 includes a fuel sensor 131, a dooropening and closing sensor 132, a vehicle speed sensor 133, a steeringangle sensor 134, and a battery sensor 135 each as an apparatus todetect a situation of the vehicle (FIG. 1D). The fuel sensor 131 detectsthe remaining amount of fuel in the vehicle 1. The door opening andclosing sensor 132 detects opened or closed status of a driver's seatdoor, a passenger seat door, and a rear seat door. The vehicle speedsensor 133 detects a speed of the vehicle 1. The steering angle sensor134 detects a steering angle of a steering wheel. The battery sensor 135detects the remaining amount of a battery for the vehicle 1. Thedescription below uses the term “vehicle information” to represent theinformation detected by an apparatus equipped for the vehicleinformation detector 13.

The recording unit 14 records a situation in the interior of the vehicle1 and a situation around the vehicle 1.

The HMI unit 15 includes a display unit 151, an interior speaker 152, anexterior speaker 153, an interior microphone 154, and a release switch155 each as an apparatus to provide an interface for man-machinecommunication (FIG. 1E). The display unit 151 is mounted on theinstrument panel at the front of the driver's seat and displays avariety of images. The interior speaker 152 is provided in the interiorof the vehicle 1 and outputs a variety of audio to a driver. Theexterior speaker 153 outputs a variety of audio to a vehicle or apedestrian around the vehicle 1. The interior microphone 154 detects thesound in the interior of the vehicle 1.

The release switch 155 releases (terminates) emergency control mode. Theemergency control mode starts when an abnormal state of the driver isdetected. The emergency control mode causes the vehicle 1 toautomatically run and then automatically stop and subsequently performsan emergency process(es) to be described later. The vehicle 1, while setin the emergency control mode, disables predetermined manipulation(e.g., driving of the vehicle 1) of the driver on the vehicle 1. Therelease switch 155 is located at a position that forces the driver tointentionally press the release switch 155. The release switch 155according to the embodiment is mounted near an interior light providedon the ceiling of the vehicle 1.

The interior environment adjustor 16 includes an interior light controlapparatus 161, a seat control apparatus 162, a seat belt controlapparatus 163, a door control apparatus 164, a window control apparatus165, and an air conditioner apparatus 166 each as an apparatus to adjustthe interior environment of the vehicle 1 (FIG. 1F).

The interior light control apparatus 161 controls to activate orinactivate the interior light. The seat control apparatus 162 adjustslengthwise positions and back angles of the driver's seat, the passengerseat, and the rear seat. The seat belt control apparatus 163 controlswinding of a driver's seat belt, a passenger seat belt, and a rear seatbelt. The door control apparatus 164 controls opening and closing of thedriver's seat door, the passenger seat door, and the rear seat door andcontrols locking and unlocking of each door. The opening and closinghere signifies transition from the opened state to the closed state andtransition from the closed state to the opened state. The window controlapparatus 165 controls opening and closing of a window provided for eachof the driver's seat door, the passenger seat door, and the rear seatdoor. The air conditioner apparatus 166 adjusts the interior temperatureof the vehicle 1.

The exterior equipment 17 includes lighting hardware 171, a hornapparatus 172, and a wiper control apparatus 173 (FIG. 1G). The lightinghardware 171 signifies lighting equipment in general mounted on thevehicle 1 to illuminate the exterior and includes a headlight, aposition lamp, and a hazard lamp, for example. The horn apparatus 172 isprovided as an alarm apparatus to set off an alarm outside the vehicle.Manipulating a horn switch built in a steering wheel causes the hornapparatus 172 to generate a sound (horn). The wiper control apparatus173 controls wiper operations.

The engine control circuit 18 controls to start and stop the engine.

The battery control circuit 19 stops supplying power to an instrument(hereinafter referred to as an “in-vehicle instrument”) that is mountedon the vehicle 1 and uses the battery of the vehicle 1 as a power supplyfor driving.

The travel control apparatus 20 includes a brake control apparatus 201,an accelerator control apparatus 202, and a steering control apparatus203 (FIG. 1H). The brake control apparatus 201 controls a braking forceapplied to the vehicle 1. The accelerator control apparatus 202 controlsan accelerator of the vehicle 1 to control a driving force applied tothe vehicle 1. The steering control apparatus 203 controls the steeringwheel of the vehicle 1.

The drive assist control circuit 21 is comparable to an electroniccontrol unit. The drive assist control circuit 21 according to theembodiment is configured to include a publicly known microcomputermainly including a CPU, ROM, and RAM, for example. The drive assistcontrol circuit 21 causes the travel control apparatus 20 to control acontrolled object and thereby enables the vehicle 1 to be capable ofautomatic travel and automatic stop. The drive assist control circuit 21causes the emergency control circuit 22 to acquire images captured bythe exterior camera 111 around the vehicle 1 and detection results fromthe laser sensor 112 and the millimeter wave sensor 113.

The emergency control circuit 22 is similar to an electronic controlunit. The emergency control circuit 22 according to the embodiment isconfigured to include a publicly known microcomputer mainly including aCPU, ROM, and RAM, for example. The emergency control circuit 22acquires environmental information from the environmental informationdetector 11, acquires interior information from the interior informationdetector 12, and acquires vehicle information from the vehicleinformation detector 13. The emergency control circuit 22 performs anemergency control process (FIGS. 2 through 4) and a situation recordingprocess (FIG. 5) to be described later based on the acquiredenvironmental information, interior information, and vehicleinformation.

The portable apparatus 3 according to the embodiment includes acommunication unit 31 and a control circuit 32 connected to each other.The communication unit 31 performs wireless communication with anexternal communication instrument via the mobile telephone network andthe Internet network. The communication unit 31 also detects the radiofield strength of a received radio wave. The control circuit 32 includesa publicly known microcomputer mainly including a CPU, ROM, and RAM. Thecontrol circuit 32 acquires the radio field strength from thecommunication unit 31 and performs a transfer process to be describedlater (FIG. 6).

2. Processes

The description below explains an emergency control process performed bythe emergency control circuit 22 with reference to flowcharts in FIGS. 2through 4. The emergency control process starts when an ignition switchof the vehicle 1 is turned on.

It is noted that a flowchart or the processing of the flowchart in thepresent application includes sections (also referred to as steps), eachof which is represented, for instance, as S101. Further, each sectioncan be divided into several sub-sections while several sections can becombined into a single section. Furthermore, each of thus configuredsections can be also referred to as a device or a module, or,furthermore, referred to as a structure-modified specific name such asan idling continuator (S106) or an idling determinator (S121 throughS123). Each or any combination of sections explained in the above can beachieved as (i) a software section in combination with a hardware unit(e.g., microcomputer) or (ii) a hardware section, including or notincluding a function of a related apparatus; furthermore, the hardwaresection (e.g., integrated circuit, hard-wired logic circuit) may beconstructed inside of a microcomputer.

At S101, the emergency control circuit 22 determines whether the stateof a driver is abnormal. The abnormal state of the driver here signifiesa sudden change in the physical condition such as cardiopulmonary arrestor myocardial infarction or a drowse, for example. The emergency controlcircuit 22 determines that the state of the driver is abnormal whendetermining that the driver closes the eyes or does not face the frontcontinuously for a predetermined time, based on a captured driver imageacquired from the driver monitoring camera 121. The emergency controlcircuit 22 moreover determines that the state of the driver is abnormalwhen determining that the vehicle 1 is suddenly accelerated, based onthe speed of the vehicle 1 acquired from the vehicle speed sensor 133.The emergency control circuit 22 furthermore determines that the stateof the driver is abnormal when determining that the steering wheel issuddenly manipulated, based on a steering wheel angle acquired from thesteering angle sensor 134. A sudden acceleration is assumed to occurwhen the driver inadvertently steps on the accelerator. A sudden changein the steering angle is assumed to occur when the driver leans againstthe steering wheel.

The emergency control circuit 22 repeats the process at S101 whiledetermining that the state of the driver is not abnormal, i.e., thedriver is normal (S101: NO). The emergency control circuit 22 maydetermine that the state of the driver is abnormal (S101: YES). In thiscase, the emergency control circuit 22 outputs an audio message thatinquires the driver whether the driver is conscious (namely, confirmsthat the driver is conscious) (S102), and prompts the driver to pressthe release switch 155 when the driver is conscious. The interiorspeaker 152 outputs an audio message such as “Are you OK? Press therelease switch 155.”

The emergency control circuit 22 determines whether the release switch155 is pressed (S103). The emergency control circuit 22 may determinethat the release switch 155 is pressed (S103: YES). In this case, theemergency control circuit 22 returns to S101 and repeats the process atS101 and later.

The emergency control circuit 22 may determine that the release switch155 is not pressed (S103: NO). In this case, the emergency controlcircuit 22 starts the emergency control mode (S104). When starting theemergency control mode, the emergency control circuit 22 causes thedisplay unit 151 to display that the vehicle 1 enters the emergencycontrol mode.

The emergency control circuit 22 outputs a directive to the drive assistcontrol circuit 21 so that the automatic travel is performed on thevehicle 1. The emergency control circuit 22 thereby causes the driveassist control circuit 21 to perform the automatic travel on the vehicle1 (S105). The drive assist control circuit 21 performs the automatictravel by recognizing the position of a white line ahead of the vehicle1 or a vehicle around the vehicle 1 based on a captured image around thevehicle 1 captured by the exterior camera 111 and detection results fromthe laser sensor 112 and the millimeter wave sensor 113.

The emergency control circuit 22 outputs a directive to the drive assistcontrol circuit 21 so that the automatic stop is performed on thevehicle 1. The drive assist control circuit 21 is caused to perform theautomatic stop on the vehicle 1 while the vehicle 1 continues idling(S106). The drive assist control circuit 21 acquires the map data andthe position of the vehicle 1 from the navigation apparatus 114 andcauses the vehicle 1 to stop at a safe place (e.g., a road shoulder)around the current position of the vehicle 1 based on the acquiredinformation. The embodiment stops the vehicle 1 while the idlingcontinues. The battery is therefore charged because the vehicle 1consumes the fuel while the idling continues even after the vehicle 1stops. The description below uses the term “emergency stop function” torepresent the function of the vehicle 1 that detects an abnormal stateof the driver and automatically stops the vehicle 1.

The emergency control circuit 22 activates the hazard lamp on thevehicle 1 (S107). The emergency control circuit 22 then causes the seatcontrol apparatus 162, the seat belt control apparatus 163, the windowcontrol apparatus 165, and the air conditioner apparatus 166 to adjustthe interior environment of the vehicle 1 (S108). The emergency controlcircuit 22 causes the seat control apparatus 162 to adjust thelengthwise position of the driver's seat and the back angle so that thedriver can settle into a comfortable position. The emergency controlcircuit 22 causes the seat belt control apparatus 163 to control windingof the driver's seat belt so that the seat belt is loosened. Theemergency control circuit 22 causes the window control apparatus 165 toopen or close the window or causes the air conditioner apparatus 166 toadjust the interior temperature so that the interior temperature iscomfortable when the interior temperature of the vehicle 1 is high orlow.

The emergency control circuit 22 causes the door control apparatus 164to lock the door of the vehicle 1 at the side of a driving lane in orderto prevent the driver from inadvertently getting out of the vehicle 1 tothe driving lane (S109). The emergency control circuit 22 determines atwhich lane of the road the vehicle 1 is positioned, based on the roadinformation and the position of the vehicle 1 acquired from thenavigation apparatus 114. The emergency control circuit 22 determineswhich of the right and left doors of the vehicle 1 corresponds to thedriving-lane side. The embodiment locks the door at the driving-laneside so that the door cannot be opened from inside the vehicle but canbe opened from outside the vehicle in order for a rescuer to open thedoor of the vehicle 1.

The emergency control circuit 22 determines whether the illuminancearound the vehicle 1 is less than or equal to predetermined thresholdvalue Th1, based on the illuminance around the vehicle 1 acquired fromthe illuminance sensor 117 (S110). Threshold value Th1 is specifiedbased on the illuminance to make a distinction between day and night,for example. The emergency control circuit 22 may determine that theilluminance around the vehicle 1 is less than or equal to predeterminedthreshold value Th1, namely, now is night (S110: YES). The emergencycontrol circuit 22 then activates the lighting hardware 171 (S111) andthe process proceeds to S112. The emergency control circuit 22 maydetermine that the illuminance around the vehicle 1 is not less than orequal to predetermined threshold value Th1, namely, the present is notnight (S110: NO). The process skips S111 and proceeds to S112.

At S112, the emergency control circuit 22 determines whether the soundvolume around the vehicle 1 is greater than or equal to predeterminedthreshold value Th2, based on the sound around the vehicle 1 acquiredfrom the exterior microphone 116 (S112). Threshold value Th2 isspecified based on the sound volume to make a distinction between asound volume with noise and a sound volume without noise. The emergencycontrol circuit 22 may determine that the sound volume around thevehicle 1 is not larger than or equal to threshold value Th2, namely,determine that no noise exists around the vehicle 1 (S112: NO). In thiscase, the emergency control circuit 22 sounds the horn apparatus 172(S113) and notifies outside the vehicle 1 that the vehicle 1 stops. Theemergency control circuit 22 may determine that the sound volume aroundthe vehicle 1 is greater than or equal to threshold value Th2, namely,determine that noise exists around the vehicle 1 (S112: YES). In thiscase, the process skips S113 and proceeds to S114.

At S114, the emergency control circuit 22 determines whether theinterior illuminance of the vehicle 1 is lower than or equal tothreshold value Th1, based on the interior illuminance of the vehicle 1acquired from the illuminance sensor 117. Threshold value Th1 at S114 isequal to threshold value Th1 at S110. The emergency control circuit 22may determine that the interior illuminance of the vehicle 1 is lowerthan or equal to threshold value Th1 (S114: YES). In this case, theemergency control circuit 22 causes the interior light control apparatus161 to turn on the interior light (S115) and the process proceeds toS116. The emergency control circuit 22 may determine that the interiorilluminance of the vehicle 1 is not lower than or equal to thresholdvalue Th1 (S114: NO). In this case, the process skips S115 and proceedsto S116.

At S116, the emergency control circuit 22 determines whether rain orsnow adheres to the windshield of the vehicle 1, based on the detectionresult acquired from the rain and snow sensor 118. The emergency controlcircuit 22 may determine that rain or snow adheres to the windshield ofthe vehicle 1 (S116: YES). In this case, the emergency control circuit22 causes the wiper control apparatus 173 to drive the wiper (S117) andthe process proceeds to S118. The emergency control circuit 22 maydetermine that neither rain nor snow adheres to the windshield of thevehicle 1 (S116: NO). In this case, the process skips S117 and proceedsto S118.

At S118, the emergency control circuit 22 determines whether the vehicle1 exists in an area capable of mobile communication, based on a radiofield strength acquired from the in-vehicle communication instrument115. The area capable of mobile communication here signifies an areathat enables communication using a mobile telephone. The emergencycontrol circuit 22 may determine that the vehicle 1 exists in an areacapable of mobile communication (S118: YES). In this case, the emergencycontrol circuit 22 causes the in-vehicle communication instrument 115 totransmit emergency stop information to an emergency response apparatusoutside the vehicle 1 (S119). The emergency stop information hererepresents at least the position of the vehicle 1. The emergencyresponse apparatus corresponds to an apparatus comparable totransmission destination of the emergency stop information and isinstalled at an overall management center that overall manages theemergency stop information transmitted from several vehicles includingthe vehicle 1.

The emergency control circuit 22 may determine that the vehicle 1 doesnot exist in the area capable of mobile communication for mobiletelephones (S118: NO). In this case, the emergency control circuit 22causes the in-vehicle communication instrument 115 to transmit theemergency stop information and transfer information to a wirelesscommunication instrument passing around the vehicle 1 (S120). Thewireless communication instrument passing around the vehicle 1 includesa portable apparatus (such as a smartphone) carried by a person passingaround the vehicle 1 or a communication instrument mounted on a vehiclepassing around the vehicle 1, for example. The transfer information isto cause the wireless communication instrument to transfer the emergencystop information to the emergency response apparatus when the wirelesscommunication instrument receives the transfer information and moves andenters the area capable of mobile communication. According to theembodiment, the portable apparatus 3 passing around the vehicle 1receives the transfer information and performs a transfer process to bedescribed later (FIG. 6) to transfer the emergency stop information tothe emergency response apparatus.

The emergency control circuit 22 detects the position of a predeterminedrefuge facility from the position where the vehicle 1 stops based on themap data and the position of the vehicle 1 acquired from the navigationapparatus 114 (S121). According to the embodiment, the refuge facilitycorresponds to a facility (such as a hospital) where the driver canundergo medical treatment and a facility (such as a gas station) wherethe vehicle 1 can be refueled. The emergency control circuit 22calculates the amount of fuel (necessary amount) needed for the vehicle1 to travel from the position where the vehicle 1 stops to the positionof the refuge facility detected at S121 (S122).

The emergency control circuit 22 determines whether the remaining amountof fuel is smaller than or equal to the necessary amount, based on theremaining amount of fuel acquired from the fuel sensor 131 (S123). Theemergency control circuit 22 may determine that the remaining amount offuel is not smaller than or equal to the necessary amount (S123: NO). Inthis case, the emergency control circuit 22 determines whether therelease switch 155 is pressed (S124). The emergency control circuit 22may determine that the release switch 155 is not pressed (S124: NO). Inthis case, the process returns to S110 and repeats S110 and later.

The emergency control circuit 22 may determine that the release switch155 is pressed (S124: YES). In this case, the emergency control circuit22 determines whether the emergency stop information is transmitted tothe emergency response apparatus, namely, whether the process at S119 isperformed (S125). The emergency control circuit 22 may determine thatthe process at S119 is performed (S125: YES). In this case, theemergency control circuit 22 causes the interior speaker 152 to outputan audio message (namely, to recommend waiting) recommending that thedriver does not move the vehicle 1 and waits at the position where thevehicle 1 stops (S126). For example, the interior speaker 152 outputs amessage such as “Do not force to drive. Wait there.” The emergencycontrol circuit 22 then outputs an audio message asking whether thedriver intends to move the vehicle 1 (namely, asking about the intentionto move) (S127). The emergency control circuit 22 prompts the driver topress the release switch 155 if the driver intends to move the vehicle1. For example, the interior speaker 152 outputs a message such as “Tomove, press the release switch 155.”

The emergency control circuit 22 determines whether the release switch155 is pressed (S128), and may determine that the release switch 155 ispressed (S128: YES). In this case, the emergency control circuit 22terminates the emergency control mode (S129). The emergency controlcircuit 22 returns to S101 and repeats the process at S101 and later.

At S125, the emergency control circuit 22 may determine that the processat S119 is not performed (S125: NO). In this case, the process skipsS126 through S128 and performs S129. The emergency control circuit 22returns to S101 and repeats the process at S101 and later. Namely, arescuer may or may not come because the emergency stop information isnot transmitted to the emergency response apparatus. In such a case, theemergency control circuit 22 terminates the emergency control modewithout causing the interior speaker 152 to output an audio message thatrecommends waiting or inquires about the presence or absence of anintention to move.

At S123, the emergency control circuit 22 may determine that theremaining amount of fuel is less than or equal to the necessary amount(S123: YES). In this case, the emergency control circuit 22 stops idlingto save the fuel consumption (S130). The emergency control circuit 22stepwise stops the emergency processes in accordance with the remainingamount of battery acquired from the battery sensor 135 (S131). Namely,the emergency control circuit 22 does not stop the emergency processesduring idling and stepwise stops the emergency processes after theidling stops. The emergency processes here are performed by theemergency control circuit 22 to control the respective in-vehicleinstruments when the emergency stop function stops the vehicle 1.

According to the embodiment, the emergency processes include a processto activate the interior light and the lighting hardware 171 providedfor the vehicle 1, a process to sound the horn apparatus 172 of thevehicle 1, a process to drive the wiper of the vehicle 1, a process totransmit a wireless signal to ask for a rescue, a process to adjust theinterior environment of the vehicle 1, a process to lock the door of thevehicle 1 at the driving-lane side, a process to open the window of thevehicle 1, a process to close the window of the vehicle 1, a process tocause the interior speaker 152 and the exterior speaker 153 to output anaudio message, a process to record at least one of an interior situationof the vehicle 1 and a situation around the vehicle 1, and a process totransmit at least one of information about an interior situation of thevehicle 1 and information about a situation around the vehicle 1 to aninformation management center.

At S131, the emergency control circuit 22 preferentially continues theprocess to adjust the interior environment of the vehicle 1, the processto transmit a wireless signal to ask for a rescue, the process to recordthe situation, and the process to transmit the information eachbelonging to the emergency processes without stopping. Namely, theemergency control circuit 22 preferentially performs an emergencyprocess that aims at protecting the life of a driver, asking for arescue outside, or protecting things in the vehicle 1.

The emergency control circuit 22 sequentially stops the other emergencyprocesses based on the following rule. Suppose a first emergency processand a second emergency process are performed. The second emergencyprocess consumes the less battery power than the first emergencyprocess. In this case, the emergency control circuit 22 stops the firstemergency process and then the second emergency process. The emergencycontrol circuit 22 stepwise stops the other emergency processes indescending order of the battery power consumption. According to theembodiment, the emergency control circuit 22 stops an emergency processto stop operation of a corresponding in-vehicle instrument.

The emergency control circuit 22 determines whether the remaining amountof the battery is smaller than or equal to predetermined amount Th3,based on the remaining amount of the battery acquired from the batterysensor 135 (S132). For example, predetermined amount Th3 is specifiedbased on the amount needed to re-ignite the engine.

The emergency control circuit 22 may determine that the remaining amountof the battery is not smaller than or equal to predetermined amount Th3(S132: NO). In this case, the emergency control circuit 22 performs theprocess at S133 through S138. S133 through S138 are equal to S124through S129 and a description is omitted. The emergency control circuit22 may determine that the remaining amount of the battery is smallerthan or equal to predetermined amount Th3 (S132: YES). In this case, theemergency control circuit 22 stops all functions of the vehicle 1 (S139)and terminates the emergency control process. Stopping all functions ofthe vehicle 1 signifies forcing the state of the vehicle 1 into thestate of the vehicle 1 that is normally available when the engine isoff. Specifically, all emergency processes (including the emergencyprocess aiming at protecting the life of the driver) stop.

The description below explains a situation recording process performedby the emergency control circuit 22 with reference to a flowchart inFIG. 5. The situation recording process starts when the ignition switchof the vehicle 1 is turned on. The situation recording process isperformed concurrently with the emergency control process.

The emergency control circuit 22 determines whether the vehicle 1 entersthe emergency control mode (S201). The emergency control circuit 22repeats the process at S201 while determining that the vehicle 1 doesnot enter the emergency control mode (S201: NO). The emergency controlcircuit 22 may determine that the vehicle 1 enters the emergency controlmode (S201: YES). In this case, the emergency control circuit 22 causesthe recording unit 14 to start recording a situation around the vehicle1 (S202). The recording unit 14 records images captured by the exteriorcamera 111 around the vehicle 1 and results detected by the laser sensor112 and the millimeter wave sensor 113.

The emergency control circuit 22 determines whether the emergency stopfunction stops the vehicle 1 (S203). The emergency control circuit 22repeats the process at S203 while determining that the emergency stopfunction does not stop the vehicle 1 (S203: NO).

The emergency control circuit 22 may determine that the emergency stopfunction stops the vehicle 1 (S203: YES). In this case, the emergencycontrol circuit 22 determines whether there is a person around thevehicle 1 (S204). The person around the vehicle 1 is assumed to be anintruder who intends to intrude into the vehicle 1 for the purpose ofrobbery, for example. The emergency control circuit 22 repeats theprocess at S204 while determining that there is no person around thevehicle 1 (S204: NO). The emergency control circuit 22 may determinethat there is a person around the vehicle 1 (S204: YES). In this case,the process causes the recording unit 14 to start recording an interiorsituation of the vehicle 1 (S205). The recording unit 14 records animage that represents the entire interior situation and is captured bythe interior monitoring camera 122.

The emergency control circuit 22 determines whether any door of thevehicle 1 opens, based on a detection result acquired from the dooropening and closing sensor 132 (S206). The emergency control circuit 22repeats the process at S206 while determining that any door of thevehicle 1 does not open (S206: NO).

The emergency control circuit 22 may determine that any door of thevehicle 1 opens (S206: YES). In this case, the emergency control circuit22 causes the interior speaker 152 and the exterior speaker 153 tooutput an audio message notifying that the situation around the vehicle1 and the interior situation of the vehicle 1 are recorded (S207). Thedoor of the vehicle 1 may be opened by an intruder as above, forexample. The audio message is output at S207 to alert the intruder.

The emergency control circuit 22 determines whether the state of therecording unit 14 is abnormal (S208). According to the embodiment, theemergency control circuit 22 determines that the state of the recordingunit 14 is abnormal when the recording unit is damaged. The recordingunit 14 may be damaged by an intruder, for example.

The emergency control circuit 22 may determine that the state of therecording unit 14 is abnormal (S208: YES). In this case, the emergencycontrol circuit 22 causes the in-vehicle communication instrument 115 totransmit situation information to the information management center(S209) and terminates the situation recording process. The situationinformation represents the interior situation of the vehicle 1 and thesituation around the vehicle 1. The emergency control circuit 22 causesthe in-vehicle communication instrument 115 to transmit the situationinformation capable of describing the situation that causes the state ofthe recording unit 14 to be abnormal.

The emergency control circuit 22 may determine that the state of therecording unit 14 is not abnormal (S208: NO). In this case, theemergency control circuit 22 determines whether the emergency controlmode terminates (S210). The emergency control circuit 22 may determinethat the emergency control mode terminates (S210: YES). In this case,the emergency control circuit 22 terminates the situation recordingprocess. The emergency control circuit 22 may determine that theemergency control mode does not terminate (S210: NO). In this case, theemergency control circuit 22 returns to S208 and repeats the process atS208 and later.

The description below explains a transfer process performed by theportable apparatus 3 with reference to a flowchart in FIG. 6. Thetransfer process is available by installing a dedicated application onan existing portable apparatus (such as a smartphone). The transferprocess stars when receiving the emergency stop information and thetransfer information from the vehicle 1.

The control circuit 32 determines whether the portable apparatus 3exists within an area capable of mobile communication, based on a radiofield strength acquired from the communication unit 31 (S301). Thecontrol circuit 32 repeats the process at S301 while determining thatthe portable apparatus 3 does not exist within the area capable ofmobile communication (S301: NO). The control circuit 32 may determinethat the portable apparatus 3 exists within the area capable of mobilecommunication (S301: YES). In this case, the control circuit 32 causesthe communication unit 31 to transmit the emergency stop information tothe emergency response apparatus (S302) and terminates the transferprocess.

3. Effects

The embodiment described above in detail provides the following effects.

(3a) The embodiment can perform all emergency processes at the timepoint when the emergency stop function stops the vehicle 1. At leastpart of the emergency processes in progress stepwise stop in accordancewith a predetermined stop sequence. The embodiment can therefore extendthe emergency process duration without reducing the number of emergencyprocesses executable at the time the vehicle stops. The embodimentstepwise stops the emergency processes in descending order of thebattery power consumption except some processes and can thereforeimprove the effect of extending the emergency process duration. Theembodiment preferentially performs the emergency processes aiming atprotecting the life of a driver, requesting a rescue outside, andprotecting things in the vehicle 1 and can therefore extend the durationof these processes.

(3b) According to the embodiment, the emergency control circuit 22continues idling that charges the battery when the vehicle 1 stops. Theembodiment can therefore extend the emergency process duration incomparison with the case of not continuing idling when the vehiclestops.

(3c) According to the embodiment, the emergency control circuit 22calculates the amount of fuel (necessary amount) needed for the vehicle1 to travel from the position of the vehicle 1 stopped by the emergencystop function to the nearest refuge facility from the stop position. Theemergency control circuit 22 stops idling when the remaining amount offuel for the vehicle 1 is smaller than or equal to the necessary amountin order to save the fuel consumption. The embodiment ensures the fuelfor the vehicle 1 to travel from the stop position to the refugefacility on condition that the remaining amount of fuel is larger thanor equal to the necessary amount when the emergency stop function stopsthe vehicle 1. The driver can drive the vehicle 1 and move to the refugefacility when the driver recovers from an abnormal state. According tothe embodiment, the refuge facility includes a facility (such as ahospital) to cure the driver or a facility (such as a gas station) torefuel the vehicle 1. The vehicle 1 can therefore travel to such afacility when the driver recovers from an abnormal state.

(3d) According to the embodiment, the emergency control circuit 22activates the lighting hardware 171 at night and sounds the hornapparatus 172 when there is no noise around the vehicle 1. Namely, theemergency control circuit 22 determines whether to activate an alarminstrument such as the lighting hardware 171 or the horn apparatus 172,based on a situation around the vehicle 1. The embodiment can thereforeactivate an alarm instrument that is more effective in alarming outsidethe vehicle 1 and can save the battery consumption by not activating analarm instrument that is less effective in alarming.

(3e) According to the embodiment, the emergency control circuit 22activates the interior light when the interior illuminance of thevehicle 1 is lower than or equal to threshold value Th1. The embodimentcan therefore make the interior situation (such as the state of adriver) of the vehicle 1 easily visible from outside the vehicle 1 evenif the interior of the vehicle 1 is dark. The emergency control circuit22 drives the wiper when rain or snow adheres to the windshield. Theembodiment can therefore make the interior situation of the vehicle 1easily visible from outside the vehicle 1 even if it rains or snows.

(3f) According to the embodiment, the emergency control circuit 22causes the in-vehicle communication instrument 115 to transmit theemergency stop information to the emergency response apparatus when thevehicle 1 exists in an area capable of mobile communication. However,the emergency control circuit 22 causes the in-vehicle communicationinstrument 115 to transmit the emergency stop information and thetransfer information to the wireless communication instrument passingaround the vehicle 1 when the vehicle 1 does not exist in the areacapable of mobile communication. The embodiment can therefore transmitthe emergency stop information to the emergency response apparatus viathe wireless communication instrument passing around the vehicle 1 evenif the emergency stop information cannot be directly transmitted to theemergency response apparatus because the vehicle 1 does not exist in thearea capable of mobile communication.

(3g) According to the embodiment, the emergency control circuit 22causes an audio message to be output so as to recommend that the driverdoes not move the vehicle 1 and waits at the position where the vehicle1 stops when the release switch 155 is pressed after the emergency stopinformation is transmitted to the emergency response apparatus. Theembodiment can therefore increase the possibility that the driver avoidsforced driving and waits until the rescue arrives when the driver doesnot fully recover from an abnormal state.

(3h) According to the embodiment, the emergency control circuit 22causes the recording unit 14 to record the interior situation of thevehicle 1 and a situation around the vehicle 1. The embodiment cantherefore discourage an intruder from committing a crime such asintruding into the vehicle 1 for the purpose of robbery and canconsequently protect the driver and things in the vehicle 1. Theembodiment outputs an audio to notify that the recording takes placewhen a door of the vehicle 1 is opened. The embodiment can furtherimprove the effect of discouraging an intruder from committing a crimeby alerting the intruder who opened the door.

(3i) The embodiment transmits the situation information (informationrepresenting an interior situation of the vehicle 1 and informationrepresenting a situation around the vehicle 1) recorded by the recordingunit 14 to the information management center when the state of therecording unit 14 is abnormal. Particularly, the embodiment transmitsthe situation information descriptive of a situation that caused thestate of the recording unit 14 to be abnormal. The situation informationcan expose the situation in which an outsider damaged the recording unit14.

According to the embodiment, the emergency control circuit 22corresponds to an example of the vehicle control apparatus that controlsthe vehicle to stop. The in-vehicle communication instrument 115, therecording unit 14, the interior speaker 152, the exterior speaker 153,the interior environment adjustor 16, and the exterior equipment 17 usethe battery of the vehicle as a power supply for driving and eachcorrespond to an example of the instrument mounted on the vehicle. Theemergency control circuit 22 performs the processes that includesections functioning as follows. S107 through S120, S124 through S126,S133 through S135, S202, S205, and S209 correspond to an example of theprocess as a process execution section or a process executor. S131corresponds to an example of the process as a process stop section or aprocess stopper. S106 corresponds to an example of the process as anidling continuation section or an idling continuator. S121 through S123correspond to an example of the process as an idling determinationsection or an idling determinator. S130 corresponds to an example of theprocess as an idling stop section or an idling stopper.

S121 corresponds to an example of the process as a facility positiondetection section or a facility position detector. S122 corresponds toan example of the process as a calculation section or a fuel calculator.S123 corresponds to an example of the process as a fuel determinationsection or a fuel determinator. S110 through S113 correspond to anexample of the process as a notification processing section or anotification processor.

The lighting hardware 171 and the horn apparatus 172 each correspond toan example of the alarm instrument. S110 and S112 correspond to anexample of the process as an alarm determination section or an alarmdeterminator. S111 and S113 correspond to an example of the process asan alarm execution section or an alarm executor. The interior light andthe lighting hardware 171 each correspond to an example of the processas the lighting equipment. S114 and S115 correspond to an example of theprocess as a lighting processing section or a lighting processor. S114corresponds to an example of the process as an illuminance determinationsection or an illuminance determinator. S115 corresponds to an exampleof the process as a lighting execution section or a lighting executor.

S116 and S117 correspond to an example of the process as a driveprocessing section or a drive processor. S116 corresponds to an exampleof the process as a rain and snow determination section or a rain andsnow determinator. S117 corresponds to an example of the process as adrive execution section or a drive executor. The in-vehiclecommunication instrument 115 corresponds to an example of thecommunication instrument. The emergency stop information and thetransfer information each correspond to an example of the wirelesssignal used to request a rescue. S118 through S120 correspond to anexample of the process as a rescue transmission processing section or arescue transmission processor. S118 corresponds to an example of theprocess as a mobile communication determination section or a mobilecommunication determinator. S119 and S120 correspond to an example ofthe process as a rescue transmission execution section or a rescuetransmission executor.

S124 through S126 and S133 through S135 correspond to an example of theprocess as an audio output processing section or an audio outputprocessor. Pressing the release switch 155 corresponds to an example ofthe predetermined manipulation on the vehicle to stop all the emergencyprocesses in progress. S124, S125, S133, and S134 correspond to anexample of the process as a manipulation determination section or amanipulation determinator. S126 and S135 correspond to an example of theprocess as an audio output execution section or an audio outputexecutor. The recording unit 14 corresponds to an example of therecording instrument. S202 and S205 correspond to an example of theprocess as a recording processing section or a recording processor. Thein-vehicle communication instrument 115 corresponds to an example of aninformation transmission instrument. S209 corresponds to an example ofthe process as a situation transmission section or a situationtransmitter.

4. Other Embodiments

While there has been described the embodiment of the present disclosure,the present disclosure is not limited to the above-mentioned embodimentbut may be variously embodied.

(4a) The above-mentioned embodiment determines whether the state of thedriver is abnormal, based on an image of the driver captured by thedriver monitoring camera 121. However, the method of determining whetherthe state of the driver is abnormal is not limited thereto. For example,the driver's seat may be provided with an electrocardiographic sensor todetect an electrocardiographic signal from the driver. The state of thedriver may be determined to be abnormal when an abnormality is detectedin the electrocardiographic signal.

(4b) The above-mentioned embodiment causes the interior speaker 152 tooutput an audio to inquire the driver whether the driver is consciouswhen the state of the driver is determined to be abnormal. The method ofinquiry is not limited thereto. For example, the display unit 151 maydisplay a visual message to inquire whether the driver is conscious.

(4c) According to the above-mentioned embodiment, the emergency controlcircuit 22 determines which of right and left doors corresponds to thedriving-lane side, based on the position of the vehicle 1 and the roadinformation. However, other methods may be used for determination. Forexample, the vehicle 1 may be assumed to travel a lane on the roadshoulder side. The door corresponding to the road shoulder side may bedetermined to differ from the door corresponding to the driving-laneside. The door opposite the road shoulder side may be simply determinedto correspond to the driving-lane side.

The above-mentioned embodiment locks the door at the driving-lane sideso that the door cannot be opened from the vehicle interior but can beopened from outside the vehicle, but is not limited thereto. The door atthe driving-lane side may be locked so that the door cannot be openedfrom the vehicle interior nor from outside the vehicle. A rescuer maytry to open the door at the driving-lane from outside the vehicle afterthe door is locked in this manner. In such a case, the emergency controlcircuit 22 may prompt the rescuer to open the unlocked door at theopposite side by using an audio from the exterior speaker 153.

(4d) According to the above-mentioned embodiment, pressing the releaseswitch 155 releases the emergency control mode. However, the method ofreleasing the emergency control mode is not limited thereto. Forexample, the emergency control mode may be released by pressing asoftware switch displayed by the display unit 151. The emergency controlmode may be released by inputting voice to the interior microphone 154.The emergency control mode may be released by performing severalmanipulations such as pressing the release switch 155 and inputtingvoice to the interior microphone 154.

(4e) The above-mentioned embodiment determines whether now is night,based on a detection value acquired from the illuminance sensor 117.However, the method of determining night is not limited thereto. Forexample, night may be determined based on that the time passes apredetermined time. Further, night may be determined based on that theposition lamp of the vehicle 1 lights.

(4f) The above-mentioned embodiment uses the same illuminance thresholdvalue Th1 to activate the lighting hardware 171 and the interior light,but is not limited thereto. Two different threshold values may be used.The above-mentioned embodiment uses one illuminance sensor 117 to detectthe illuminance around the vehicle 1 and interior illuminance of thevehicle 1, but is not limited thereto. For example, differentilluminance sensors may be used to detect the illuminance around thevehicle 1 and interior illuminance of the vehicle 1.

(4g) According to the above-mentioned embodiment, the emergency controlcircuit 22 determines whether to sound the horn apparatus 172, based onthe presence or absence of noise around the vehicle 1. However, thedetermination criterion to sound the horn apparatus 172 is not limitedthereto. For example, the emergency control circuit 22 may determinewhether to sound the horn apparatus 172, based on the position of thevehicle 1 on the map. In this case, for example, the emergency controlcircuit 22 may determine that the horn apparatus 172 needs to sound whenthe emergency stop function stops the vehicle 1 at a place such as anurban area where a large crowd of people is gathered.

(4h) According to the above-mentioned embodiment, the emergency controlcircuit 22 activates the lighting hardware 171 at night and sounds thehorn apparatus 172 when no noise exists around the vehicle 1. However,the method of causing the alarm instrument to generate alarm based onsituations around the vehicle 1 is not limited thereto. For example, analarm instrument mounted at the rear of the vehicle 1 may generate alarmwhen the vehicle 1 stops at a place (such as an expressway) thatrequires more attention to behind the vehicle 1 than attention to aheadof the vehicle 1. Suppose the vehicle 1 may stop at a place (such as atwo-way street without medial strip) that requires generating alarmbehind and ahead of the vehicle 1. In such a case, an alarm instrumentmounted on the front of the vehicle 1 and an alarm instrument mounted onthe rear of the vehicle 1 may generate alarm.

(4i) According to the above-mentioned embodiment, the lighting hardware171 is activated to deliver notification outside the vehicle. However,the notification method is not limited thereto. For example,notification may be delivered by placing a display apparatus (such as anelectronic message board) at a position of the vehicle 1 capable ofbeing viewed from outside the vehicle. Notification may be delivered byusing inter-vehicle communication to output audio from a speaker of avehicle passing around the vehicle 1. Notification may be delivered byposting the emergency stop information to a community-based web sitesuch as SNS (Social Networking Service) via the Internet network.Notification may be delivered by transmitting the emergency stopinformation to a road administrator of a public highway corporation sothat a broadcast station can broadcast that the vehicle 1 stops.Notification may be delivered in such a manner that the in-vehiclecommunication instrument 115 transmits the emergency stop information toa communication instrument (such as a smartphone) carried by a driver ofthe vehicle 1 into the vehicle 1 and the communication instrument poststhe emergency stop information outside the vehicle.

(4j) According to the above-mentioned embodiment, the emergency stopinformation represents at least a position of the vehicle 1 but is notlimited thereto. For example, the emergency stop information mayrepresent at least a position of the vehicle 1 and a state of a driver.

(4k) According to the above-mentioned embodiment, the recording unit 14records an image captured by the exterior camera 111 around the vehicle1. However, an object recorded by the recording unit 14 is not limitedthereto. For example, the recording unit 14 may record sound detected bythe exterior microphone 116 or the interior microphone 154.

(4l) The above-mentioned embodiment transmits the situation information(information representing the interior situation of the vehicle 1 andthe situation around the vehicle 1) to the information management centerwhen the state of the recording unit 14 is determined to be abnormal.However, transmission of the situation information is not limitedthereto. For example, the situation information may be alwaystransmitted to the information management center after a person isdetermined to exist around the vehicle 1. The above-mentioned embodimenttransmits the situation information recorded by the recording unit 14but is not limited thereto. For example, the situation around thevehicle 1 may be detected by the exterior camera 111 and may betransmitted immediately to transmit the situation information notrecorded by the recording unit 14.

(4m) According to the above-mentioned embodiment, the recording unit 14records the situation around the vehicle 1 and the interior situation ofthe vehicle 1 but is not limited thereto. The recording unit 14 mayrecord only one of the situations.

(4n) According to the above-mentioned embodiment, the emergency controlcircuit 22 determines that the state of the recording unit 14 isabnormal when the recording unit 14 is damaged. However, the case ofdetermining that the state of the recording unit 14 is abnormal is notlimited thereto. For example, the state of the recording unit 14 may bedetermined to be abnormal when the amount of information recorded by therecording unit 14 exceeds a recordable limit.

(4o) According to the above-mentioned embodiment, the emergency processactivates the interior light and the lighting hardware 171 provided forthe vehicle 1 but is not limited thereto. For example, the emergencycontrol circuit 22 may perform the emergency process to cause the doorcontrol apparatus 164 to unlock a door of the vehicle 1 when the door ofthe vehicle 1 is locked at the time a rescuer arrives.

(4p) According to the above-mentioned embodiment, the emergency controlcircuit 22 stops the emergency process to stop operation of thein-vehicle instrument. However, the method of stopping operation of thein-vehicle instrument is not limited thereto. For example, the batterycontrol circuit 19 may stop supplying the power to the in-vehicleinstrument to stop operation of the in-vehicle instrument.

(4q) According to the above-mentioned embodiment, the apparatus such asthe lighting hardware 171 or the horn apparatus 172 continues operation(such as lighting or sounding) once the operation starts except that theoperation is stepwise stopped at S131. However, the operation is notlimited thereto. For example, suppose the illuminance around the vehicle1 is determined to be lower than or equal to threshold value Th1 atS110, the lighting hardware 171 is turned on, the process at S110 isperformed again, and then the illuminance around the vehicle 1 isdetermined to be not lower than or equal to threshold value Th1. In sucha case, the lighting hardware 171 may be turned off.

While the present disclosure has been described with reference toembodiments thereof, it is to be understood that the disclosure is notlimited to the embodiments and constructions. The present disclosure isintended to cover various modification and equivalent arrangements. Inaddition, the various combinations and configurations, othercombinations and configurations, including more, less or only a singleelement, are also within the spirit and scope of the present disclosure.

1. A vehicle control apparatus that is mounted on a vehicle including anemergency stop function to detect an abnormal state of a driver andautomatically stop the vehicle, the vehicle control apparatus providingcontrol at a time of stopping the vehicle, the vehicle control apparatuscomprising: a plurality of process execution sections that performpredetermined emergency processes in response to the emergency stopfunction stopping the vehicle, the emergency processes controllinginstruments that are mounted on the vehicle and use a battery of thevehicle as a driving power source; and a process stop section thatstepwise stops at least part of the emergency processes performed by theprocess execution sections based on a predetermined stop sequence. 2.The vehicle control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein: the processexecution sections include a first process execution section to performa first emergency process and a second process execution section toperform a second emergency process that consumes less power of thebattery than the first emergency process; and the process stop sectionstops the first emergency process and then stops the second emergencyprocess.
 3. The vehicle control apparatus according to claim 1, furthercomprising: an idling continuation section that continues idling tocharge the battery in response to the emergency stop function stoppingthe vehicle; an idling determination section that determines whether tostop the idling continued by the idling continuation section, based on aremaining amount of fuel in the vehicle; and an idling stop section thatstops the idling in response to the idling determination sectiondetermining to stop the idling, wherein the process stop section doesnot stop the emergency processes during the idling and stepwise stops atleast part of the emergency processes based on the predetermined stopsequence after the idling stop section stops the idling.
 4. The vehiclecontrol apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the idling determinationsection includes: a facility position detection section that detects aposition of a predetermined refuge facility nearest to a position wherethe emergency stop function stops the vehicle; a calculation sectionthat calculates an amount of fuel needed by the vehicle to travel from aposition of the vehicle stopped by the emergency stop function to aposition of the refuge facility detected by the facility positiondetection section; and a fuel determination section that determineswhether the remaining amount of fuel in the vehicle is smaller than orequal to the amount of fuel calculated by the calculation section,wherein the idling stop section stops the idling in response to the fueldetermination section determining that the remaining amount of fuel inthe vehicle is smaller than or equal to the amount of fuel calculated bythe calculation section.
 5. The vehicle control apparatus according toclaim 4, wherein the refuge facility corresponds to at least either afacility capable of curing the driver or a facility capable of refuelingthe vehicle.
 6. The vehicle control apparatus according to claim 1,wherein the process execution sections include a notification processingsection that performs, among the emergency processes, a process tonotify outside the vehicle that the emergency stop function stops thevehicle, the notification processing section including: an alarmdetermination section that determines whether to cause an alarminstrument provided in the vehicle to deliver notification, based on asituation around the vehicle; and an alarm execution section that causesthe alarm instrument to deliver notification in response to the alarmdetermination section determining that the alarm instrument is caused todeliver the notification.
 7. The vehicle control apparatus according toclaim 1, wherein the emergency processes performed by the processexecution sections include at least one process among processes thatare: a process to activate lighting equipment provided in the vehicle; aprocess to sound a horn of the vehicle; a process to drive a wiper ofthe vehicle; a process to transmit a wireless signal to request arescue; a process to adjust an interior environment of the vehicle; aprocess to lock a door of the vehicle at a driving-lane side; a processto open a window of the vehicle; a process to close a window of thevehicle; a process to cause a speaker of the vehicle to output an audiomessage; a process to record at least either an interior situation ofthe vehicle or a situation around the vehicle; and a process to transmitat least either information representing an interior situation of thevehicle or information representing a situation around the vehicle, toan information management center.
 8. The vehicle control apparatusaccording to claim 1, wherein the process execution sections include alighting processing section that performs, among the emergencyprocesses, a process to activate an interior light of the vehicle, thelighting processing section including: an illuminance determinationsection that determines whether an interior illuminance of the vehicleis lower than or equal to a predetermined threshold value; and alighting execution section that activates an interior light in responseto the illuminance determination section determining that theilluminance is lower than or equal to the threshold value.
 9. Thevehicle control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the processexecution sections include a drive processing section that performs,among the emergency process, a process to drive a wiper of the vehicle,the drive processing section including: a rain and snow determinationsection that determines whether at least either rain or snow adheres toa windshield of the vehicle; and a drive execution section that drivesthe wiper in response to the rain and snow determination sectiondetermining that at least either rain or snow adheres to the windshieldof the vehicle.
 10. The vehicle control apparatus according to claim 1,wherein the process execution sections include a rescue transmissionprocessing section that performs, among the emergency processes, aprocess to cause a communication instrument provided in the vehicle totransmit a wireless signal requesting a rescue.
 11. The vehicle controlapparatus according to claim 10, wherein the rescue transmissionprocessing section includes: a mobile communication determinationsection that determines whether the vehicle exists in an area capable ofmobile communication enabling communication using a mobile telephone;and a rescue transmission execution section, wherein, in response to themobile communication determination section determining that the vehicleexists in the area capable of mobile communication, the rescuetransmission execution section causes the communication instrument totransmit, to an emergency response apparatus, emergency stop informationrepresenting at least a position of the vehicle, the emergency responseapparatus being as a transmission destination of the emergency stopinformation, whereas in response to the mobile communicationdetermination section determining that the vehicle does not exist in thearea capable of mobile communication, the rescue transmission executionsection causes the communication instrument to transmit, to a wirelesscommunication instrument, the emergency stop information and informationthat causes the wireless communication instrument to transfer theemergency stop information to the emergency response apparatus inresponse to the wireless communication instrument moving and enteringthe area capable of mobile communication, the wireless communicationinstrument being passing around the vehicle stopped by the emergencystop function.
 12. The vehicle control apparatus according to claim 11,wherein the process execution sections include an audio outputprocessing section that performs, among the emergency processes, aprocess to cause a speaker of the vehicle to output an audio message,the audio output processing section including: a manipulationdetermination section that determines whether a predeterminedmanipulation on the vehicle is performed to stop all the emergencyprocesses in progress after the communication instrument transmits theemergency stop information to the emergency response apparatus; and anaudio output execution section that causes the speaker to output anaudio message recommending the driver to wait at a position where theemergency stop function stops the vehicle without moving the vehicle, inresponse to the manipulation determination section determining that themanipulation is performed after the communication instrument transmitsthe emergency stop information to the emergency response apparatus. 13.The vehicle control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the processexecution sections include a recording processing section that performs,among the emergency processes, a process to cause a recording instrumentprovided in the vehicle to record at least either an interior situationof the vehicle or a situation around the vehicle.
 14. The vehiclecontrol apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the process executionsections include a situation transmission section that performs, amongthe emergency processes, a process to cause an information transmissioninstrument provided in the vehicle to transmit at least eitherinformation representing an interior situation of the vehicle orinformation representing a situation around the vehicle to aninformation management center, the information transmission instrumentbeing capable of transmitting information.